Solutions

• Problem: Trying to start a drill bit on a flat surface usually results in the drill bit wandering if there is no center punch. How can this be stopped if a center punch is not handy?

• Solution: Cross two pieces of masking tape over the hole location. This provides a retaining surface to minimize drill bit wander that can easily be removed later.

Contributor: Tracy Faulk, Brooklyn, NY.

See through bubbles

• Problem: Ultrasonic liquid level sensors can be ineffective if there is foam or bubbles on the liquid surface. How can the sensor be set up to ignore the surface condition of the liquid?

• Solution: Install a piece of PVC pipe on the end of the sensor as a stilling well. Drill a vent hole above the liquid surface. Set the end of the pipe below the liquid level. Foam or bubbles will not affect readings.

Annual Salary Survey

After two years of economic concerns, manufacturing leaders once again have homed in on the single biggest issue facing their operations:

It's the workers—or more specifically, the lack of workers.

The 2017 Plant Engineering Salary Survey looks at not just what plant managers make, but what they think. As they look across their plants today, plant managers say they don’t have the operational depth to take on the new technologies and new challenges of global manufacturing.